December 23, 2008
Christmas Comes Early for Phils as they Win Chase for Utley
It was the moment Philadelphia fans had been waiting for. For years, the Phillies had been on the sidelines during free agency, watching as other teams snatched up the best players on the market.
That time is over. As of 3:00 this afternoon, Chase Utley, possibly the top free agent on the market, signed a five year deal worth just over $82 million. Utley, whose 2008 season was limited by a foot injury, still managed to bat .304 with 11 home runs and 43 RBI. General manager David Hurka believes that Utley brings a force into the Philadelphia lineup that was not there before.
"We're thrilled to have Chase as a member of the Phillies," he said during the introductory press conference. "His power is second to none among second basemen, and his defense is stellar as well. Not only that, but he's a proven winner, as he's helped take both Toronto and Arizona to the playoffs. We can't wait to see Chase on the field this spring."
Utley was also excited about the future of the Phillies.
"I signed here because I believe this is a team that's going places, and I want to be a part of it," he said. "I always loved coming to Philadelphia to play, and now that I'm going to be playing here all the time, it's going to be amazing. The fans here are great, and I'm going to do all that I can to bring them a championship."
For his career, Utley is a .309 hitter, with almost 1,500 hits and 251 home runs. As long as his foot is completely healed, he'll be an imposing sight for opposing pitchers for at least the next five seasons.
Chase Utley greets some Phillies fans after his first official Philadelphia press conference.
Merry Christmas, Philadelphia.
There was no sighing now, no throwing of the newspaper on the pile today. Instead, I think I earned a little bit of congratulations, at least from myself. I wanted to make a play for Utley, but did I ever think we would sign him? Not really, not with the money that he wanted. Yeah, I low-balled him, just threw a number out there that was well below what his agent was supposedly asking for. For some reason, no other team offered him what he wanted to hear, and just two days ago, my phone rang. It was Chase, he wanted to sign the contract. He was going to be a Phillie.
I still haven't quite gotten down off my cloud yet. I know this job is supposed to be tough, and lord knows it will be soon, but so far, this is the best job on the planet. I just put Chase Utley and Ryan Zimmerman in the same lineup. Go ahead, pick your poison. Of course, there's still the issue about Chase's foot, which he broke last year after fouling a pitch off it. He missed almost three months, but he cleared his physical, so he should be good to go. I just hope he's worth all this money I'm giving him. If he turns out to be another Lyle Overbay, I'll never hear the end of it.
The papers just skimmed over a few other deals I made, but I think they're just as important as landing Chase. I managed to bolster our outfield depth, signing Garret Anderson and Timo Perez to cheap contracts. Anderson hit .294 last season as a backup for the Giants, while Perez struggled with the Padres, hitting just .213. I didn't sign Perez for his bat, though. I signed him for his glove, which he'll be using as a backup and defensive replacement in the outfield. Anderson will be a decent bat off the bench, and should provide some veteran leadership if all goes well.
Sorry, I'm still floating a little bit. I've even got WIP talking about us in December. Damn Angelo Cataldi thinks that the Eagles announcing they're cutting Donovan McNabb is better news than this signing. Oh well, I guess I can't win 'em all.
Not yet, anyway.